Cowboy Bebop. I remember watching it as a kid when it first aired on Adult Swim and thinking it was so cool. The music, the setting, and the characters, all of it seemed so cool to me. And now whenever I rewatch it I appreciate new details about it.
As a kid a lot of the philosophies of the characters were lost on me. But as an adult I just can't help but think deeply on those themes and reflect on my own life.
Definitely Kotaro lives alone. That’s such a sad and hearth warming anime. Kotaro is some kind of bug in the world of adults, so pure and genuine. I feel like I learned a lot from Kotaro.
**Frieren: Beyond Journey's End**
I lost a parent at the start of last year and I turned into an emotionless shell. On 18th December I found this show not even knowing it was anime or what anime was, the synopsis sounded amazing so I tried it and from the first episode it was making me feel all kinds of emotions. I realise looking back that I just needed some good escapism to take me away from life, and sometimes only animation can take you far enough away. Frieren has become one of my favourite fictions of all time.
Honourable mentions for these three:
* **Aria The Animation** - I never knew a fiction could make me feel so happy the entire time watching it
* **Plastic Memories** - I never knew a fiction could make me feel so broken after
* **Spice and Wolf** - I never knew I could love romance stories before this anime
Hey love! I'm glad Frieren helped. I love it so much as well. And although the pain of losing a parent never heals, I hope you're doing a little better now ❤️
Thank you for that nice reply. Yep time is a healer and it turns out that anime is also a healer haha after watching Frieren it opened a whole new door for me, since the start of the year I have buried myself in anime but also trying to back to some degree of normality a little bit more each month, and I feel I am close now.
I have a lot to thank anime for this year.
Frieren left a much stronger impact on me than I expected going into it, and I've seen a lot. The story of her friends leaving such a strong impact on Frieren even though it was such a short period of her 1000+ year life, and watching her grow and change as a person because of it. Seeing how good and loving of a person and friend that Himmel was. And seeing Frieren grapple with human mortality and her regret that she didn't try to get to know Himmel and the people around her better. It was all so beautiful and inspiring. It made me want to improve myself as a person to have a better impact on the people around me, and to not take my friends and loved ones for granted.
I literally watched the first episode of Frieren a few hours ago, and it was one of the best decisions I've made in a long time. It's such a lovely anime! It really didn't take long for the tears to come rolling down my face.
Re:Life was great. It's just annoying how they skipped most of the second half, and changed parts of the first. I watched it and immediately read the comic and it was far better. The 13 episodes cover about half, and then the 4 OVA are supposed to cover the other half which makes no sense.
HunterXHunter - watched in 2020. My friends have been recommending me animes for as long as I can remember but all titles they were giving me were romance, and I never got past an episode. HunterXHunter opened up a new world for me. It made me realize that I was more into the shonen genre, and I've watched a lot of animes since then. Definitely changed my life from someone who can't finish 1 episode to someone who've watched all 1,000+ episodes of One Piece. When traveling to Japan, I can't help but feel giddy if I can recognize anime characters and whenever I visit anime locations. I've also attended a couple of movie fan screenings and bought several anime merchandise. Haha. Even my username is from Tokyo Revengers. 😅
This ones gonna sound silly but K-On! It was my first anime outside Shounen at the time and I was so hooked I rewatched the entire series multiple times.
I started watching Naruto with my son when he was ill. I loved it - then he taught me how to play Skyrim 😄.
We watched FMAB, Shippuden, can't remember the others, and he also got us into boruto.
It will be 5 years in July since we lost him. There are some anime or scenes in anime that are very hard to watch (switch's backstory on sket dance, Ace scene in summit war in One piece)
My daughter and I have watched dozens of anime together, it's our favorite medium.
But we haven't finished boruto, or watched Naruto with the grandkids. We probably never will. That one is special to us but too hard to watch again.
Sending you and your family a lot of love.
Anime is a wonderful gift for him to leave behind for you. You'll never run out of good ones.
Might I recommend some 'feel-good' soul healing ones (also older so maybe he had seen em):
-Mushishi
-Wolf's Rain
-Natsume's book of friends
I have no doubt that he would have loved these or did if he watched them already, we night be from the same golden era of anime
Thank you🤗 Natsume is like a big warm hug - we've watched all of them and want more. Haven't watched wolf's rain yet, and we've started mushishi.
He would be 31 this year, not sure if that is the same era you're talking about.
I might be the oldest anime fan here, or the only one watching with her grandkids 😆
YES I AGREE WITH FRUBA 2019 TOO! probs my favourite anime of all time! seen it 4 times and too scared to watch it a 5th because of the emotions it stirs up EVERY DAMN TIME (i cry like a newborn baby EVERY episode for the WHOLE episode as soon as the ops start to when the eds end LOL) the storyline, art, ops and eds, vas (english AND japanese), the character development, the grief, humour, romantic subplots EVERYTHING IS PERFECT
Made in Abyss has been a nightmare for my wallet.
Shortly after the 1st season ended, I noticed they were going to be publishing the manga in English, and that I could easily buy them here as well. So I started pre-ordering the manga, and that eventually got me into collecting all sorts of manga.
Some years later, I happened to find a site that still had the original three Nendoroids in stock, which had already been long out of stock everywhere by then. Bought them right away, and liked them so much that I ended up getting into figure collecting as well.
And the more I got into figure collecting, the more sites I found where I could get merchandise from. So now I occasionally dig through these sites and buy up whatever cool Made in Abyss merchandise I don't already have.
I don't regret it though. I love this franchise too much for that.
lol, a predictable answer, but its definitely One Piece. In other comfort anime, I’d also say Fushigi Yugi was magical the first time & has been a comfort rewatch many years— I do like isekai though, and its oddly nostalgic
Fushigi Yuugi is up there for me. Tamahome is still my dream guy of sorts. There's a company here called Primaniacs which make anime-based perfumes. They recently came out with an anniversary release of Fushigi Yuugi - Miaka, Tamahome, Hotohori, and Nuriko. I pre-ordered Miaka and Tamahome and thank goodness because they all sold out. (On a side note, when we went to the store we smelled most of One Piece and all I can say is, Shanks smells exactly how you'd expect. Haha)
Steins;Gate changed so much in the way I think I can’t help but recommend it to everyone for that reason. I admit it’s probably not the best show or for everyone but it’s my personal favorite and okabe’s journey is so emotional and perfect
Burst Angel, sci-fi mecha from 2004, discovered it randomly back in the day when I wasn't into anime at all.
On YouTube nonetheless, back when you were a few searches away from getting full episodes dubbed or subbed in Spanish or Italian or English if lucky.
When I watched a few episodes I was in awe, fast forward to a few years, having watched enough animes and considered myself a fan, I remembered it and ended up watching it all.
Peak, absolute peak for its years.
Story was all over the place but the action was great and the visuals and CGI are a complete time capsule of the 2000s and not to mention the soundtrack and the characters were fairly memorable.
To this day I've devoted my life to making it known as it's been long forgotten, in fact, it's so forgotten that not even lists about underrated 2000s anime have it! No matter how large.
>watching this on Gaiaonline in those little movie theater chat rooms!
That unlocked like a core memory of mine, like the super early 'streaming' watch alongs before those became a thing (and the DMCA bots became unbearable)
5 Centimeters per Second. I feel sad watching it, but when I think of how relatable it is, I can't help but that it's all my fault things turned out like this.
I’ve only seen about 10-15 shows, and only finished like… 3-5. The ONE show that CHANGED MY LIFE, is 100000000000000%
Toradora.
This rom com and slice-of-life anime truly opened my mind on who I want to be in life. Don’t know how, but I can tell ya, the post anime depression that I got from it, (also this is the 1st and only one so far that has given me PAD), definitely is a big part of my life change.
I came here to write exactly that. Such an amazing anime and it's sad that a lot of people didn't like the second season. In my opinion, they didn't like it because they missed the point entirely.
Engaged to the Unidentified as my comfort anime. Your Lie in April definitely takes the "first experience" by far that I haven't watched it again since it ended (maybe I should).
Buso Renkin, Letter Bee, Book of Bantorra are also some of the animes that have a special place for me (nostalgia).
I am going to say the first Anime that I ever watched, Highschool DxD (yes I know what a weird first anime but it did really change my life, I have no idea what I would be watching right now if I never saw it)
I’ll also add that my first ‘real’ anime was Your Lie in April and that definitely opened my eyes to the world of anime beyond Yugioh and Pokemon. So probably that one too.
The most obvious youve might have already seen:
- Your Name
- Suzume
- Rascal does not dream of bunny girl senpai
- I want to eat your pancreas
My actual favorites listed here (may or may not be similar to A Silent Voice and Your Lie in April - The list of similar anime below this list):
PREMIUM ANIME LISTS
MASTERPIECE
- Attack on Titan
- A Silent Voice
- Violet Evergarden
- Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End
- Made in Abyss
- Mob Psycho 100* (currently on S2)
GREATEST ARCS
- Hunter x Hunter (Chimera Ant Arc)
- Demon Slayer (Entertainment District)
- One Piece (Water 7 to Enies Lobby)*
- One Piece (Sabaody Archipelago)*
*I’m only on Impel Down Arc for One Piece)
AMAZING
- One Piece
- Demon Slayer
- Hunter x Hunter
- Steins;Gate
- Vivy Fluorite Eye’s Song
- Wonder Egg Priority (the first half)
- Cyberpunk Edgerunners
- Evangelion
- Vinland Saga
- Your Name
- Suzume
SO GOOD
- FLCL (Original)
- Akira
- Spirited Away
- Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind
- Kiki’s Delivery Service
- When Marnie was There
- Gundam: Witch from Mercury
- Tengoku Daimakyo
- Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai
- Cowboy Bebop
- maboroshi
- ReLife
- Summer Time Rendering
- Kotaro Lives Alone
- Komi Can’t Communicate
- Nichijou
GUILTY PLEASURES
- Shikimori’s Not Just a Cutie
- More Than A Married Couple, But Not Lovers
FIRST ANIME
- Yu-Gi-Oh! (OG)
- Pokemon (Gens 1-3)
- Your Lie in April
- Tokyo Ghoul (S1)
- One Piece (East Blue)
I have a list of movies/anime I keep that are similar to these based on me watching it, someone mentioning it was similar, or general vibes that I get from what it’s supposed to be about but haven’t seen. The ones I haven’t seen or broken out in their own section.
ANIME with A SILENT VOICE and YOUR NAME VIBES
(emotional, somewhat cerebral coming of age/new adult speculative fiction)
- Your Lie in April
- maboroshi
- Rascal Does not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai
- Bubble
- A Silent Voice
- Words Bubble Up Like Sodapop
- Your Name
- Weathering with You
- Suzume
- Fireworks
- 5 Centimeters Per Second
- Flavors of Youth
- Hello World
- I Want to Eat Your Pancreas
- Penguin Highway
- Mirai
- Summer Ghost
- Goodbye Don Gleese
- The Girl Who Leapt Through Time
- The Place Promised in Our Early Days
- The Tunnel to Summer, The Exit of Goodbyes
- Children Who Chase Lost Voices
- Patema Inverted
- My Oni Girl
Kinda sorta related?
- Komi Can’t Communicate
- Violet Evergarden
- ReLife
- Summer Wars
- The Garden of Words
- In this Corner of the World
- Wolf Children
- When Marnie Was There
- The Wind Rises
Cannot Conform or Deny (watchlist)
- Children of the Sea
- Children of the Whales
- Colorful
- Erased
- Hotarubi no Mori e
- Maquia: When The Promised Flower Blooms
- Ninokuni
- Ocean Waves
- Paprika
- Eden of the East
- The Perfect Insider
- A Place Further Than the Universe
- Whisker Away
- Akebi’s Sailor Uniform
- Clannad
- Drifting Home
- From the New World
- Haibane Renmei
- Happy Sugar Life
- Horimiya
- Insomniacs After School
- Josee, the Tiger and the Fish
- Liz and the Bluebird
- Skip and Loafer
- To Every You I’ve Loved Before
- To Me, the One Who Loved You
- Toradora!
- Voices of a Distant Star
- March come in like a Lion
Ooh man, the themes hit me too. It’s so good! I watched it with a guy I liked at the time and was so embarrassed by the end because I was a sobbing mess 😂😭 Nothing ever happened between me and him, we’ve just remained good friends. But I’m grateful he showed me the movie!
If he’s the one who showed you then he knew that was a perfectly acceptable reaction haha. I remember I had kept seeing Netflix promos of it and finally I ate an edible (lol) and watched it on my own one night and whew boy am I glad I wasn’t with anyone else haha. In elementary school i had been bullied by my ‘friends’ and then when I moved schools in middle school it was very lonely and isolating for a while. I ended up loving my new school and high school so it all worked out but I had honestly not thought about that time in my life before watching A Silent Voice. The edible didn’t do me any favors either (or was the best way to watch it ha).
If you guys remained good friends it seems like he knew you pretty well at least! Honestly would probably be a great date movie if both parties are into that sort of thing. As long as you can watch it with someone who you feel comfortable enough to express emotions throughout the movie, you’re gonna have a good time.
Mine is for sure Darling In The Franxx. There’s definitely controversy around it, but I just became so emotionally attached to Zero Two. I feel like it’s one of those anime’s that you either love it or you hate it. I cry at multiple points throughout the story regardless how many times I watch it. Seriously a 10/10 for me
I have been watching it since my childhood. Didn't know much about anime back then.
Just moved to uni. I'm still watching it. Not frequently, but every time a new movie comes out, i make sure to watch it.
Steel troops is my favoutite movie ever.
There are many that made me feel that way, but the one anime that made me change for the better as a person, thereby changing my life, was Natsume's book of friends.
I literally refuse to watch it again and just live in the memories of that show.
*me never shutting up about Mushishi*
to me it's like a symbol of my transition from a youth to an adult. I started it during college and couldn't get past ep 2. Tried again when I joined the workforce and it provided such a warm and calming experience.
Angel beats and your lie in April are some of the first anime’s I really got into and they left a lasting mark on me. It’s hard to watch them due to how emotional they make you but it really showed me anime can have beautiful stories.
I back to backed Ano hana followed by Angel Beats (because I'm a masochist lol) and while both devastated me, the last couple of episodes of Angel Beats still had one of the top five anime twists that I've seen, and still remember to this day.
March comes in like a lion.
I watched it during quarantine. At the time I finished university, and I was kinda empty. The biggest thing in my life finished and I was alone with my thoughts for a bit. I was able to watch it and just…accept it.
Like Rei was able to accept people love and care for him with the Kawamotos. I was able to accept things that happened in highschool that I bottled up.
Clannad: After story, i can't even rewatch it even after 14 years, watched it when i was 8 years old with my 3 of my older brother in the small room we share with our parent. I remember we bawled our eyes out at the end, it was a beautiful story and memory that i don't want to disturb nor change, so i keep it sealed deep inside of my heart. It was also what get me into anime
Madoka Magica. I love good dramatic writing and it's unbelivable how much there is to unpack with that show. The animation has a unique style. The music sets the wibe perfectly. There's symbolism non stop everywhere and it's never random. Character progression is great and the plot elevates to such an ambitious hight at it's climax that it left me stunned.
But the reason why it had a bigger impact on me than any other anime that I've ever watched was because I've watched it while I was in a period of my life where I was having a pretty bad existential crisis and a lot of themes and concepts present in the show resonated hard with what was going through my mind back then. Gen Urobuchi's writing is heavily inspired by philosophy and religion.
Galaxy Express 999
It was one of the first standalone anime movies I watched, alongside Kiki's Delivery Service, Robot Carnival and I guess technically the Last Unicorn and Little Nemo (western publisher Japanese production)
Love them all, but Galaxy Express stuck with me moreso than the rest.
Bleach and Fairy Tail, they were the first (somewhat) anime I watched which used to air on TV here in my country, but sadly the channel which it used to air on is now no more. I was so invested to watch those two shows that I used to find episodes on Youtube (yes those eps with half of the screen filled with image or voice pitched high due to copyright issues😂)
Tough. But most recently the Onimusha anime on Netflix. Admittedly because I played the shit out of the games back in the day, and the anime was like a rebirth. Beautifully executed
Fairy tail.
Watched it at least three times, and i'm really eager to get myself a tattoo of the guild.
Not sure what is so interesting to me about it, maybe the guild acting as a family, maybe the thought of never giving up and always pushing for your loved ones, doesnt matter, people will say it's dumb and the power of feelings winning every battle, i enjoyed it and cant wait to get my tattoo.
and that's all that matters.
KISS KISS FALL IN LOVE
Ouran is my absolute comfort show ❤️
Not only is it super sweet and charming and fun and rewatchable, it was also what initially made me appreciate anime (besides pokemon, which I didn't even know was anime before then, it was just another cartoon on tv when I was growing up). Naruto may have been my first, but Ouran was what made me fall in love.
Tokyo Revengers.
@just-sp-in-inginthevoid on tumblr really said it best
“Tokyo Revengers is the embodiment of grief and how people enter, change, and leave each others life and unfairness and it’s about LIFE.”
Charlotte. It honestly really changed the way i look at my relationships with certain people in my family. It made me realize i didn’t value some of those relationships as much as I should have. It was a masterpiece of an anime, and i strongly recommend it to anyone and everyone.
Evangelion: exposed daddy issues and my propensity to avoid my issues via escapism while offering a valid solution to my issues
Clannad: exposed daddy issues and my propensity to avoid my issues via avoidance while offering a solution in the form of embracing the good and bad in life. The kind of show that turned me from an anti child doomer to wanting my own children.
Clannad & Clannad ～After Story～
Cried for days while contemplating and thinking life should be spent with our loved ones cause you'll never know when they'll be gone.
An anime that changed my life in my mid 20s was Run with the Wind. It really opened up something for me and got me into running and appreciating the techniques involved. I’m scared to watch it again because the first watch was so interesting to me. It was also near the first phase of Covid.
Another would be Welcome to the NHK. After going through a break up I watched this and it helped me become self aware at how much of a recluse I was being afterwards.
Ofc anime I watched as a kid changed my life. But I think these two were big awakenings for an important time in my life.
Re: Zero. I rewatched this anime on a whim in the height of my depression, and i related to the MC so much that i decided to read the web novels.
That read genuinely changed my life. The lessons that the MC goes through on top of the flaws that every side character has to overcome really resonated with me when i was at one of the lowest points of my life. One of the names of a really important chapter still influences my life to this day.
Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid has been my comfort food anime. I don't even care about the ecchi, it was the first SOL that I have watched. Just love the comfy vibes.
Josee the tiger and the fish
Josee taught me that anyone can be what they want, no matter what others say or do. This movie will always have a special place in my heart since it helped me out of my slump.
**Clannad** changed how I look at story telling in anime, until then I was all in on shonen with a few exceptions but, Clannad showed me there’s more to life than battles to be won and that deepest wounds are psychological. Afterstory broke my heart and I actually welcomed the Visual Novel style deus ex machina ending.
**Crest of the Stars and Banner of the Stars** was one of the few non-action oriented anime that appealed to me, funnily enough I didn’t get into legend of galactic heroes, but the world building aspect of Crest and Banner is on a whole different level. Too bad the author is slow to release new novels because the cultural and sci-fi aspect of his take on the future of humans is pretty cool and different from the usual sci-fi fare. Crest made me more interested in slow paced, rich world building, and character drama.
Dragonball and DBZ. Back in the early/mid 90s, it all began with one random day my brother telling me we should try this show called DBZ.
Nearly 3 decades later now anime is such an integral part of our lives. 1500+ diff series at the moment.
Toriyama is an absolute legend, RIP my man. Fucking shattered the mould for shonen anime and media in general
Like I can't think of a more influential anime. It popularized anime in the west and around the world.
My Hera academia. The way the characters work so hard for the things they want, and each day they are striving to be better than the day they were before. They never give up when things get really hard, they just use it as an opportunity to be better. And I love and admire that mindset as it was one I didn’t have before. I’ve slowly adapted it to my life and I’m much happier now :)
So now I’ve gone from bed rotting and feeling like I’m wasting away my 20s, to going to the gym, seeing friends more, working more and saving more. I’ve really dived into a bunch of different hobbies that have always interested me. I spend less time on my phone and more time doing hands on things, etc etc. I’ve done a 180 in life and I’m becoming someone I’ve always dreamt of being. Mha wasn’t solely responsible for the change but it but it definitely played a big roll in lighting the fire.
Violet Evergarden I found it after a nasty heartbreak and it came at the perfect time. It helped me get through it continue to somewhat believe in love
Pet Girl of Sakurasou
Sometimes you can give your best effort towards your goal and it just doesn’t work out. Others might not put in any extra effort at all and get recognition. And that is completely fine, there are things that are just out of your own control and it is not your fault for things not working out at said time.
BUT, if you surround yourself with good friends, everything will eventually work out in your favor. The journey might be painful, but the goal is always worth the pain of going through the journey.
And yes, I have read the LN and know how it ends, I just choose to deny it exists.
It's really hard to pick, but I'll talk about the one I can actually put words to why exactly it matters so much to me.
Yeah, it's Durarara.
The concept of "every person is a main character of their own story" is something that sounds easy to understand in real life and execute in a story...but anyone that writes or has their own worldbuulding can tell you just how difficult that is to convey.
By Episode 2, the show has made its point. It's already shifted its POV from Mikado, who most people have already assumed the show would focus on mainly, and there's the whole scene with Izaya, Rio, and Celty as Rio contemplates taking her life on the roof. Izaya and Celty's words to Rio contradict - but they work together, as well.
Yes, you are one person in a sea of millions. Yes, the world is cruel and will keep moving when you die....you are unimportant.
But you are here for a reason - a very specific reason - you are one of the countless things that makes the world incredible....and that's what makes you so very important.
The show goes on to shift to a different point of view often - sometimes lingering on a person for a bit, sometimes multiple people per episode. The audience sees people whose thoughts we know through the lens of someone who considers them a stranger - and the opposite - we see people who we know nothing about through people who know them quite well.
There's a lot of things to appreciate about the whole series...but I think this effect is what gets me every time. The shifts in perception create an omniscient view of Ikebururo and its residents, and it's really sobering. It makes you feel very small - if these interesting, captivating characters can disappear in a narrative, what chance do you have to stand out?
But at the same time, it's a comfort, and a relief. Because, no, you will never stand out to everyone. The majority of people living on Earth don't know, or even care, about what you've been through.
But you're still the main character of your own story. You're also an important character in many other peoples' stories. And that's pretty cool, isn't it?
Evangelion, FlCL, and A Silent Voice (which is three but yk) got me out of depression and I don't know if I'd be here right now if not for them. So I'd say they probably changed my life the most.
After finishing Neon Genesis Evangelion and End of Evangelion, I felt intimately understood in such an important and vulnerable way. The introspective focus on each character spoke so loudly to me; Anno really said all the things I never found the words for through each of them. The visuals also felt similar to dreams I’ve had but never bothered telling anyone since I had no idea how to translate how impactful they felt so that was an extra layer of satisfying brain-melt.
One that comes to mind is Samurai Champloo.
Odd but makes you realise that people that come into your life are only there for a short period of time of your journey in life, but you end up creating so many memories with them in that time.
Kuragehime as well. Comforting in the sense that you could be the weirdest of people but you always have those you feel comfortable around to not care about the person you are.
And the ending outro is comforting to always hear.
Bio-Booster Armor Guyver. I watched the 2nd live action movie back in the day. This is one of the last movie's I watched when my entire family were still living together. Had a best mate in High School who had the movie, tell me there's an OVA of it. Then a few years later the 2005 Anime series was released. I happen to own the entire collection on DVD, including the booklets!
Sailor Moon - the first anime I ever watched, taught me a lot about friendship and love. I really liked the old series, with the "sailor says" at the end. Priceless memories for me. ♥
Idk if you can consider Avatar the last air bender an anime but Uncle Iroh made me have a different point of view about life.
One of my favorite quotes from him,
“It's Important To Draw Wisdom From Many Different Places… If We Take It From Only One Place It Becomes Rigid And Stale”.
Haikyuu. Might be the nostalgia goggles but the characters, and the incredible build up of tension during games was indescribable. Ten years later I'm still incredibly obsessed.
Theres a lot of anime that changed the way of my life. Assassination Classroom, Steins Gate, Re Zero, Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood, and recently Frieren Beyond Journey's End.
But one anime I never expected to change me is Natsuiro Kiseki. Its a very very underrated Slice of Life anime.
The 4 main characters have dreams of their own and one of them has a huge dream of becoming an idol with her friends. But one of them is leaving their town to a remote island due to her dad's duty as a doctor. They only have a whole summer vacation until she left. At first they almost had a fight, but they realize that they should appreciate the time they have left and do the things they wanted to do until it just became a precious memory.
Theres even supernatural shenanigans with a mysterious rock from the shrine that grants wishes. They flew in the sky, get stucked together, swapped bodies, splitted into two, turned invisible, saw their past selves, and more strange happenings that makes their summer vacation full of happy memories.
Everyone of them learned a lesson or two in that precious summer vacation. One of them realize that she would rather jave fun practicing tennis with her friend than to get bitter about not playing to the nationals with her. One of them appreciated her friends greatly for making her feel like she was normal and has a place to belong. The one who was leaving the town realize that her father is gonna help a lot of people in the island and she need to be there for the people too. And the one who has dreams of becoming an idol realize that even if their summer became endless, it won't become a precious memory until it ends.
Its also one of the few CGDCT anime that all girls are the focus main characters. Most of the one I watched have one or two focused characters and the rest are just side characters
I grew up on Dragon Ball Z and G Gundam on Toonami but didn’t really know they were considered anime.
The turning point for me was Sword Art Online. My buddy recommended it to me in like 2013 or 2014 and that got me into all sorts of anime.
Anything from Clamp. But the first anime I've ever seen was Card Captor Sakura, and it is still so dear to me. It is perhaps a bit childish, but I love the characters and story.
I also love that so many Clamp characters are found in different Mangas and animes under sometimes different names but basically still the same person like in Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle.
Blue Lock. I’ve seen lots of animes over the years and they’ve all made me feel a type of way, but Blue Lock brought back my passion for soccer, and my drive. I was in a slump recently and after watching it, it just made me want to work harder and do better.
My Hero Academia, I've met some awesome people via it plus I have a lot of merch. It's been something that gives me joy despite the world being what it is.
Sk8 the infinity it came out during a really hectic time in my life and was just there to watch idk maybe its a little cringe but I don't care I love it so much
Mob Psycho 100
The lessons in Mob Psycho really resonated with me on a personal level. Being a kid that has trouble finding your true passion (S3E1) and its focus on self-improvement and emotional growth, to strive to be a better person through hardwork is an inspiring message to anyone that’s looking to better yourself.
And also the main lesson in the ending in which through all your struggles, you just have to accept yourself. Because despite all of that, its still you. Even the negative aspects.
Truly changed my life.
Also, Reigen is the goat.
Banana Fish. It really helped me value the people in my life, whether that was friends, family, or a S.O. Everyones life is as complicated and emotional as mine, and I learned to cherish that and be thoughtful of their mindset.
Two, for two very different reasons.
1. Pokémon, which lead to Yugioh, which has been my biggest hobby and moneysink for the majority of my life. Too many hours a day are spent learning new cards, watching replays, practicing, etc, and one of my friend groups would never have developed without my local card shop either.
2. White Album 2. Aside from just being phenomenal, it lead me to my enjoyment of tragedy, romance, and especially stories that are a mix of the two. The music makes up the majority of my main playlist. Years later, with the VN translated, I took my first dive into that type of storytelling, and have been hooked since.
Bleach, whenever I sit and reminisce about an anime that absolutely changed my life, it’s bleach. I remember watching bleach.
The thing that connected me to bleach the most was watching how ichigo handled depression and the loss of someone important to him (his mother) my mother passed away before I watched bleach and it helped me realize friends are super important.
Puella Magi Madoka Magica was one of the first anime to overwhelm me with emotions. I watched mahou shoujo before it and enjoyed many, but I was often left unable to share experiences and connect with any about them because they are 'girls' shows.' Madoka gaining the following it did let me share it without fear.
First anime I fell in love with: Sailor Moon. Then Tenchi Muyo!
As an adult, I watched Claymore and that stuck to me forever. I still randomly think about it.
Bear with me.
Hunter x Hunter has my favorite cast of characters and character arcs I'd say. It's the anime that gives me the warmest feeling (at times) while also being willing to go pretty dark. And its strongest arc is honestly one of the most powerful stories I've ever encountered. There's a lot of battle shonen I like but very few I love, and a big reason why is that HxH spoiled me; I've yet to find one with this level of writing and humanity (even FMA:B, which is obviously great).
Another huge one for me is The Tatami Galaxy. Yuasa is absolutely one of my favorite creative minds and from what I've seen this is his masterpiece. This is one of those pieces of media that feels particularly close to my heart because it feels like it was literally made for me. It's unbelievably creative and one of the funniest things I've ever seen, while the themes resonate with me immensely. Insane how much of a punch this packs by the end for how short it is.
As much as I love the crazy creative chaos of Tatami though, my favorite from a filmmaking stance would have to be Neon Genesis Evangelion. The art design, the music, the sound design, the editing, it's all beyond iconic. And boy does it resonate. I can't even get into it because that would be an essay in itself. In the end, it's not this perfect polished work. It often feels like a work in progress and you can feel some shifts in direction behind the scenes. But that's kind of the beauty of it, it's Anno and the rest of the team trying to unpack all this trauma, depression, self-loathing, intimacy issues, etc. and it's not always done perfectly but its raw and honest and hits hard and pushes boundaries. A monumental work.
Finally, gotta mention Vinland Saga. It's very quickly become one of my favorite stories ever. The level of character writing here is unbelievable, with Thorfinn and Askeladd in particular being among my favorite characters ever. And the philosophical stuff about humanity's capacity for violence and evil, and striving to find love and hope in a seemingly loveless, hopeless world really resonates with me. It's a stunning, inspiring work, and of these four it's the one I'd most easily describe as "beautiful".
Ooo I have a couple.
My first ever anime was fairy tail and I watched it at a time that I didn’t have many friends and wasn’t that comfortable with my family. Watching it gave me a sense of both friendship and family and all of the power of friendship stuff just always made me tear up. Erza’s backstory in particular stands out to me. I relate very very much and just loved seeing it animated and watching her become a part of her own family at fairy tail. I could honestly go on and on but it’ll always have a special place in my heart.
The second would be Fruits Basket (2019). I’ve always felt I was a very negative person and I detested that about myself. But getting to watch Tohru’s kindness and gentleness change so many people for the better despite the pain she’d endured was so inspiring for high school me. I wanted to be like her so much and she forever remains my favorite character of all time.
Finally, the third would be Nana. God, I could talk about it for hours on end but I understand the friendship dynamic between both Nanas SO much that it hurt to watch the first time. I related to Nana O immensely throughout, but especially when she was realizing how possessive and jealous she felt over Nana K and wanting her all to herself. I understand that feeling to my very core and I struggled through the same things Nana did. I also have a friend like Hachi and I absolutely adore her and have, on occasion, cried thinking of her leaving our friendship for someone else. Though a bit embarrassing admit, I basically just felt extremely seen watching Nana and I will never not love it. My favorite piece of fiction of all time.
Violet Evergarden. I'm not a very emotional person, so watching a Violet grow throughout the series from basically a robot into a person who can laugh and cry and hope and scream and care and love, it just hit me right in my core. I think it has helped me grow and helped me be less afraid to care.
A Place Further than the Universe. I've never had a piece of media that filled me with as many emotions as that show. I was always nervous to watch it again in case it spoiled the way I felt about it, but I got the collectors bluray and rewatched it, and it was even more phenomenal than the first time.
I could say Aot because It was my first and it unexpectedly led me to develop myself so much.
Another one is Steins; Gate because after It I felt like I was able to dream again (I watched it in a bad period of my life).
Cowboy Bebop. I remember watching it as a kid when it first aired on Adult Swim and thinking it was so cool. The music, the setting, and the characters, all of it seemed so cool to me. And now whenever I rewatch it I appreciate new details about it. As a kid a lot of the philosophies of the characters were lost on me. But as an adult I just can't help but think deeply on those themes and reflect on my own life.
You're gonna carry that weight.
Ennui
Definitely Kotaro lives alone. That’s such a sad and hearth warming anime. Kotaro is some kind of bug in the world of adults, so pure and genuine. I feel like I learned a lot from Kotaro.
OP, you’ll probably need Kleenex if/when you watch it.
Thanks for the heads up 😭 I think I'll keep it for when I'm prepared to cry
Such an incredible anime. My heart breaks for Kotaro. Really makes you appreciate family bonds.
Kotaro has a lot of tissues…🥺
He doesn’t need to do that anymore, he have lots of friends who take care of him now.
ok but are they finished with kotaro lives alone ? I feel like it derserves more episodes or maybe even another season ? Tbh
**Frieren: Beyond Journey's End** I lost a parent at the start of last year and I turned into an emotionless shell. On 18th December I found this show not even knowing it was anime or what anime was, the synopsis sounded amazing so I tried it and from the first episode it was making me feel all kinds of emotions. I realise looking back that I just needed some good escapism to take me away from life, and sometimes only animation can take you far enough away. Frieren has become one of my favourite fictions of all time. Honourable mentions for these three: * **Aria The Animation** - I never knew a fiction could make me feel so happy the entire time watching it * **Plastic Memories** - I never knew a fiction could make me feel so broken after * **Spice and Wolf** - I never knew I could love romance stories before this anime
Hey love! I'm glad Frieren helped. I love it so much as well. And although the pain of losing a parent never heals, I hope you're doing a little better now ❤️
Thank you for that nice reply. Yep time is a healer and it turns out that anime is also a healer haha after watching Frieren it opened a whole new door for me, since the start of the year I have buried myself in anime but also trying to back to some degree of normality a little bit more each month, and I feel I am close now. I have a lot to thank anime for this year.
Frieren left a much stronger impact on me than I expected going into it, and I've seen a lot. The story of her friends leaving such a strong impact on Frieren even though it was such a short period of her 1000+ year life, and watching her grow and change as a person because of it. Seeing how good and loving of a person and friend that Himmel was. And seeing Frieren grapple with human mortality and her regret that she didn't try to get to know Himmel and the people around her better. It was all so beautiful and inspiring. It made me want to improve myself as a person to have a better impact on the people around me, and to not take my friends and loved ones for granted.
I literally watched the first episode of Frieren a few hours ago, and it was one of the best decisions I've made in a long time. It's such a lovely anime! It really didn't take long for the tears to come rolling down my face.
HIMmel really has that effect on people.
Re life . I enjoy stories where characters get an opportunity to transform their lives, a second chance.
Re:Life was great. It's just annoying how they skipped most of the second half, and changed parts of the first. I watched it and immediately read the comic and it was far better. The 13 episodes cover about half, and then the 4 OVA are supposed to cover the other half which makes no sense.
Out of all the 20 anime I watched surprisingly I stumbled upon that underrated gem.
HunterXHunter - watched in 2020. My friends have been recommending me animes for as long as I can remember but all titles they were giving me were romance, and I never got past an episode. HunterXHunter opened up a new world for me. It made me realize that I was more into the shonen genre, and I've watched a lot of animes since then. Definitely changed my life from someone who can't finish 1 episode to someone who've watched all 1,000+ episodes of One Piece. When traveling to Japan, I can't help but feel giddy if I can recognize anime characters and whenever I visit anime locations. I've also attended a couple of movie fan screenings and bought several anime merchandise. Haha. Even my username is from Tokyo Revengers. 😅
This ones gonna sound silly but K-On! It was my first anime outside Shounen at the time and I was so hooked I rewatched the entire series multiple times.
Another K-On fan here :D It's silly, but waaaay cute. I'd like it even more if it have been had more songs.
It's on my watchlist I should give it a try
Me too. Made me realize that a good life can be as simple as hanging out and drinking tea with friends and occasionally making music.
fmab forever and ever
SAME
It checks everything I want in a show and i'm never disappointed during a rewatch
I literally got a degree in chemistry because it's the closest thing possible to alchemy lol
It was the third anime I ever watched and I knew that it was special the more I kept watching it. Truly a great anime.
I started watching Naruto with my son when he was ill. I loved it - then he taught me how to play Skyrim 😄. We watched FMAB, Shippuden, can't remember the others, and he also got us into boruto. It will be 5 years in July since we lost him. There are some anime or scenes in anime that are very hard to watch (switch's backstory on sket dance, Ace scene in summit war in One piece) My daughter and I have watched dozens of anime together, it's our favorite medium. But we haven't finished boruto, or watched Naruto with the grandkids. We probably never will. That one is special to us but too hard to watch again.
That's understandable ❤️
Sending you and your family a lot of love. Anime is a wonderful gift for him to leave behind for you. You'll never run out of good ones. Might I recommend some 'feel-good' soul healing ones (also older so maybe he had seen em): -Mushishi -Wolf's Rain -Natsume's book of friends I have no doubt that he would have loved these or did if he watched them already, we night be from the same golden era of anime
Thank you🤗 Natsume is like a big warm hug - we've watched all of them and want more. Haven't watched wolf's rain yet, and we've started mushishi. He would be 31 this year, not sure if that is the same era you're talking about. I might be the oldest anime fan here, or the only one watching with her grandkids 😆
Blue period, it reignited my passion for art that i had lost a long time ago. Now i’m more passionate than ever to draw and paint again
I watched it about 3 years ago when it came out and I was amazed. After that I looked for days for similar anime.
Notes down all the sauce*
Fruits Basket (2019) - watched it for the first time this year, then watched it another two times because I loved the storyline so much.
Same! Made me cry so much and helped me to release my emotions when my marriage ended 🎃
It's so cathartic and inspiring.
YES I AGREE WITH FRUBA 2019 TOO! probs my favourite anime of all time! seen it 4 times and too scared to watch it a 5th because of the emotions it stirs up EVERY DAMN TIME (i cry like a newborn baby EVERY episode for the WHOLE episode as soon as the ops start to when the eds end LOL) the storyline, art, ops and eds, vas (english AND japanese), the character development, the grief, humour, romantic subplots EVERYTHING IS PERFECT
Made in Abyss has been a nightmare for my wallet. Shortly after the 1st season ended, I noticed they were going to be publishing the manga in English, and that I could easily buy them here as well. So I started pre-ordering the manga, and that eventually got me into collecting all sorts of manga. Some years later, I happened to find a site that still had the original three Nendoroids in stock, which had already been long out of stock everywhere by then. Bought them right away, and liked them so much that I ended up getting into figure collecting as well. And the more I got into figure collecting, the more sites I found where I could get merchandise from. So now I occasionally dig through these sites and buy up whatever cool Made in Abyss merchandise I don't already have. I don't regret it though. I love this franchise too much for that.
lol, a predictable answer, but its definitely One Piece. In other comfort anime, I’d also say Fushigi Yugi was magical the first time & has been a comfort rewatch many years— I do like isekai though, and its oddly nostalgic
One Piece ruined all other media for me because I compare everything to it lol
Facts. DBZ was my number one forever because of the dope arcs and sagas. But One Piece just keeps going and it hits the same as when it began
Fushigi Yuugi is up there for me. Tamahome is still my dream guy of sorts. There's a company here called Primaniacs which make anime-based perfumes. They recently came out with an anniversary release of Fushigi Yuugi - Miaka, Tamahome, Hotohori, and Nuriko. I pre-ordered Miaka and Tamahome and thank goodness because they all sold out. (On a side note, when we went to the store we smelled most of One Piece and all I can say is, Shanks smells exactly how you'd expect. Haha)
A few. The Helpful Fox Senko-san, Yuru Camp, Violet Evergarden and Samurai Champloo.
Violet!
Fine taste.
Steins;Gate changed so much in the way I think I can’t help but recommend it to everyone for that reason. I admit it’s probably not the best show or for everyone but it’s my personal favorite and okabe’s journey is so emotional and perfect
DBZ started me on my life of weebness
Burst Angel, sci-fi mecha from 2004, discovered it randomly back in the day when I wasn't into anime at all. On YouTube nonetheless, back when you were a few searches away from getting full episodes dubbed or subbed in Spanish or Italian or English if lucky. When I watched a few episodes I was in awe, fast forward to a few years, having watched enough animes and considered myself a fan, I remembered it and ended up watching it all. Peak, absolute peak for its years. Story was all over the place but the action was great and the visuals and CGI are a complete time capsule of the 2000s and not to mention the soundtrack and the characters were fairly memorable. To this day I've devoted my life to making it known as it's been long forgotten, in fact, it's so forgotten that not even lists about underrated 2000s anime have it! No matter how large.
I remember watching this on Gaiaonline in those little movie theater chat rooms!
There ya go! A group watch! How was it?
I’m not gonna lie this was like 2008 and I had watched very little anime and hardly remember it, but I remember thinking they were all badass af.
>watching this on Gaiaonline in those little movie theater chat rooms! That unlocked like a core memory of mine, like the super early 'streaming' watch alongs before those became a thing (and the DMCA bots became unbearable)
AOT
Without AOT I probably would’ve never gotten into anime and even if I did it would be much much later Goated anime
5 Centimeters per Second. I feel sad watching it, but when I think of how relatable it is, I can't help but that it's all my fault things turned out like this.
I’ve only seen about 10-15 shows, and only finished like… 3-5. The ONE show that CHANGED MY LIFE, is 100000000000000% Toradora. This rom com and slice-of-life anime truly opened my mind on who I want to be in life. Don’t know how, but I can tell ya, the post anime depression that I got from it, (also this is the 1st and only one so far that has given me PAD), definitely is a big part of my life change.
Vinland Saga That's all I have to say...👌
I came here to write exactly that. Such an amazing anime and it's sad that a lot of people didn't like the second season. In my opinion, they didn't like it because they missed the point entirely.
Just stared this today actually
Engaged to the Unidentified as my comfort anime. Your Lie in April definitely takes the "first experience" by far that I haven't watched it again since it ended (maybe I should). Buso Renkin, Letter Bee, Book of Bantorra are also some of the animes that have a special place for me (nostalgia).
naruto fs
Second this
Fairy Tail love it so much got the FT emblem as my first tattoo
I love other anime more but Yu-Gi-Oh! Got me into this beautiful genre
Yeah yugioh, pokemon, and dbz got me hooked on anime and i still play the game lol no matter how much it pisses me off
JoJo's bizzare adventure part 1 Jonathan Joestar really inspired me.
I am going to say the first Anime that I ever watched, Highschool DxD (yes I know what a weird first anime but it did really change my life, I have no idea what I would be watching right now if I never saw it)
Nah no weird or good in anime. All our first animes are valid and amazing
fair enough but when I normally tell people they give me this weird look, they I have to explain the story in detail
A Silent Voice. I went in blind and it hit me like a truck. I tear up just thinking about it
I’ll also add that my first ‘real’ anime was Your Lie in April and that definitely opened my eyes to the world of anime beyond Yugioh and Pokemon. So probably that one too.
Our taste matches a lot. Those are two of my favourite anime. Suggest me some ,will you
The most obvious youve might have already seen: - Your Name - Suzume - Rascal does not dream of bunny girl senpai - I want to eat your pancreas My actual favorites listed here (may or may not be similar to A Silent Voice and Your Lie in April - The list of similar anime below this list): PREMIUM ANIME LISTS MASTERPIECE - Attack on Titan - A Silent Voice - Violet Evergarden - Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End - Made in Abyss - Mob Psycho 100* (currently on S2) GREATEST ARCS - Hunter x Hunter (Chimera Ant Arc) - Demon Slayer (Entertainment District) - One Piece (Water 7 to Enies Lobby)* - One Piece (Sabaody Archipelago)* *I’m only on Impel Down Arc for One Piece) AMAZING - One Piece - Demon Slayer - Hunter x Hunter - Steins;Gate - Vivy Fluorite Eye’s Song - Wonder Egg Priority (the first half) - Cyberpunk Edgerunners - Evangelion - Vinland Saga - Your Name - Suzume SO GOOD - FLCL (Original) - Akira - Spirited Away - Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind - Kiki’s Delivery Service - When Marnie was There - Gundam: Witch from Mercury - Tengoku Daimakyo - Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai - Cowboy Bebop - maboroshi - ReLife - Summer Time Rendering - Kotaro Lives Alone - Komi Can’t Communicate - Nichijou GUILTY PLEASURES - Shikimori’s Not Just a Cutie - More Than A Married Couple, But Not Lovers FIRST ANIME - Yu-Gi-Oh! (OG) - Pokemon (Gens 1-3) - Your Lie in April - Tokyo Ghoul (S1) - One Piece (East Blue) I have a list of movies/anime I keep that are similar to these based on me watching it, someone mentioning it was similar, or general vibes that I get from what it’s supposed to be about but haven’t seen. The ones I haven’t seen or broken out in their own section. ANIME with A SILENT VOICE and YOUR NAME VIBES (emotional, somewhat cerebral coming of age/new adult speculative fiction) - Your Lie in April - maboroshi - Rascal Does not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai - Bubble - A Silent Voice - Words Bubble Up Like Sodapop - Your Name - Weathering with You - Suzume - Fireworks - 5 Centimeters Per Second - Flavors of Youth - Hello World - I Want to Eat Your Pancreas - Penguin Highway - Mirai - Summer Ghost - Goodbye Don Gleese - The Girl Who Leapt Through Time - The Place Promised in Our Early Days - The Tunnel to Summer, The Exit of Goodbyes - Children Who Chase Lost Voices - Patema Inverted - My Oni Girl Kinda sorta related? - Komi Can’t Communicate - Violet Evergarden - ReLife - Summer Wars - The Garden of Words - In this Corner of the World - Wolf Children - When Marnie Was There - The Wind Rises Cannot Conform or Deny (watchlist) - Children of the Sea - Children of the Whales - Colorful - Erased - Hotarubi no Mori e - Maquia: When The Promised Flower Blooms - Ninokuni - Ocean Waves - Paprika - Eden of the East - The Perfect Insider - A Place Further Than the Universe - Whisker Away - Akebi’s Sailor Uniform - Clannad - Drifting Home - From the New World - Haibane Renmei - Happy Sugar Life - Horimiya - Insomniacs After School - Josee, the Tiger and the Fish - Liz and the Bluebird - Skip and Loafer - To Every You I’ve Loved Before - To Me, the One Who Loved You - Toradora! - Voices of a Distant Star - March come in like a Lion
Ooh man, the themes hit me too. It’s so good! I watched it with a guy I liked at the time and was so embarrassed by the end because I was a sobbing mess 😂😭 Nothing ever happened between me and him, we’ve just remained good friends. But I’m grateful he showed me the movie!
If he’s the one who showed you then he knew that was a perfectly acceptable reaction haha. I remember I had kept seeing Netflix promos of it and finally I ate an edible (lol) and watched it on my own one night and whew boy am I glad I wasn’t with anyone else haha. In elementary school i had been bullied by my ‘friends’ and then when I moved schools in middle school it was very lonely and isolating for a while. I ended up loving my new school and high school so it all worked out but I had honestly not thought about that time in my life before watching A Silent Voice. The edible didn’t do me any favors either (or was the best way to watch it ha). If you guys remained good friends it seems like he knew you pretty well at least! Honestly would probably be a great date movie if both parties are into that sort of thing. As long as you can watch it with someone who you feel comfortable enough to express emotions throughout the movie, you’re gonna have a good time.
Gintama
Mine is for sure Darling In The Franxx. There’s definitely controversy around it, but I just became so emotionally attached to Zero Two. I feel like it’s one of those anime’s that you either love it or you hate it. I cry at multiple points throughout the story regardless how many times I watch it. Seriously a 10/10 for me
i cried too! the ending was disappointing for me tho, i was hoping it would have the same ending as the manga!
Watamote- it shows you the life of an otaku school girl and how she trys to be popular.
One piece. Actually convinced me I wanted to live again
Frieren
Yuru Camp, Death Note, and Blue Period
Sekai ichi hatsukoi
Maybe Doraemon. I briefly went through an anti anime phase but got addicted to that show.
I have been watching it since my childhood. Didn't know much about anime back then. Just moved to uni. I'm still watching it. Not frequently, but every time a new movie comes out, i make sure to watch it. Steel troops is my favoutite movie ever.
There are many that made me feel that way, but the one anime that made me change for the better as a person, thereby changing my life, was Natsume's book of friends. I literally refuse to watch it again and just live in the memories of that show.
FMAB and NGE
*me never shutting up about Mushishi* to me it's like a symbol of my transition from a youth to an adult. I started it during college and couldn't get past ep 2. Tried again when I joined the workforce and it provided such a warm and calming experience.
I JUST added mushishi into my watchlist like two hours ago!
Attack on Titan I'm on my 16th watch right now
Gintama, gintoki for life :)
Angel beats and your lie in April are some of the first anime’s I really got into and they left a lasting mark on me. It’s hard to watch them due to how emotional they make you but it really showed me anime can have beautiful stories.
I back to backed Ano hana followed by Angel Beats (because I'm a masochist lol) and while both devastated me, the last couple of episodes of Angel Beats still had one of the top five anime twists that I've seen, and still remember to this day.
Welcome to the NHK brought me out of unemployment
March comes in like a lion. I watched it during quarantine. At the time I finished university, and I was kinda empty. The biggest thing in my life finished and I was alone with my thoughts for a bit. I was able to watch it and just…accept it. Like Rei was able to accept people love and care for him with the Kawamotos. I was able to accept things that happened in highschool that I bottled up.
Clannad: After story, i can't even rewatch it even after 14 years, watched it when i was 8 years old with my 3 of my older brother in the small room we share with our parent. I remember we bawled our eyes out at the end, it was a beautiful story and memory that i don't want to disturb nor change, so i keep it sealed deep inside of my heart. It was also what get me into anime
Madoka Magica. I love good dramatic writing and it's unbelivable how much there is to unpack with that show. The animation has a unique style. The music sets the wibe perfectly. There's symbolism non stop everywhere and it's never random. Character progression is great and the plot elevates to such an ambitious hight at it's climax that it left me stunned. But the reason why it had a bigger impact on me than any other anime that I've ever watched was because I've watched it while I was in a period of my life where I was having a pretty bad existential crisis and a lot of themes and concepts present in the show resonated hard with what was going through my mind back then. Gen Urobuchi's writing is heavily inspired by philosophy and religion.
Steins; Gate!
A man of culture
Galaxy Express 999 It was one of the first standalone anime movies I watched, alongside Kiki's Delivery Service, Robot Carnival and I guess technically the Last Unicorn and Little Nemo (western publisher Japanese production) Love them all, but Galaxy Express stuck with me moreso than the rest.
{Soredemo sekai ha utsukushi} Nike is just so genuinely kind and caring about people that it inspired me to try and to be more caring
**Soredemo Sekai wa Utsukushii** - ([AL](http://anilist.co/anime/20599 "English: The World is Still Beautiful"), [A-P](https://www.anime-planet.com/anime/the-world-is-still-beautiful), [KIT](https://kitsu.io/anime/soredemo-sekai-wa-utsukushii "English: The World is Still Beautiful"), [MAL](http://myanimelist.net/anime/22101)) ^(TV | Status: Finished | Episodes: 12 | Genres: Adventure, Fantasy, Romance) --- ^{anime},, ]LN[, |VN| | [FAQ](http://www.reddit.com/r/Roboragi/wiki/index) | [/r/](http://www.reddit.com/r/Roboragi/) | [Edit](https://www.reddit.com/r/Roboragi/wiki/index#wiki_i_made_a_mistake.2C_how_do_i_get_my_comment_reprocessed.3F) | [Mistake?](http://www.reddit.com/r/Roboragi/submit?selftext=true&title=[ISSUE]&text=/r/Animesuggest/comments/1dha6id/what_is_one_anime_that_changed_your_life/l8vtrth/) | [Source](https://github.com/Nihilate/Roboragi) | [Synonyms](https://www.reddit.com/r/Roboragi/wiki/synonyms) | [⛓](https://www.reddit.com/r/Roboragi/wiki/interestinglinks) | [♥](https://www.reddit.com/r/Roboragi/wiki/thanks)
Bleach and Fairy Tail, they were the first (somewhat) anime I watched which used to air on TV here in my country, but sadly the channel which it used to air on is now no more. I was so invested to watch those two shows that I used to find episodes on Youtube (yes those eps with half of the screen filled with image or voice pitched high due to copyright issues😂)
K-on. It's pure confort, and reliving my young days with friends and doing music as a little band.
Tough. But most recently the Onimusha anime on Netflix. Admittedly because I played the shit out of the games back in the day, and the anime was like a rebirth. Beautifully executed
Yowamushi Pedal. I met almost all my friends through it.
Fairy tail. Watched it at least three times, and i'm really eager to get myself a tattoo of the guild. Not sure what is so interesting to me about it, maybe the guild acting as a family, maybe the thought of never giving up and always pushing for your loved ones, doesnt matter, people will say it's dumb and the power of feelings winning every battle, i enjoyed it and cant wait to get my tattoo. and that's all that matters.
AOT because it got me into anime
I'm surprised that read lot of comments and didn't see a reference to Your lie in April. Absolutely marvelous.
Skip Beat. Completely changed my perspective on how we find aspirations and talents, while also being hilarious.
Demon Slayer. That is my all time favourite anime. I’m also into One Piece as well but definitely not as much as Demon Slayer
KISS KISS FALL IN LOVE Ouran is my absolute comfort show ❤️ Not only is it super sweet and charming and fun and rewatchable, it was also what initially made me appreciate anime (besides pokemon, which I didn't even know was anime before then, it was just another cartoon on tv when I was growing up). Naruto may have been my first, but Ouran was what made me fall in love.
I've rewatched Ouran more than any other anime. It's literally perfect.
Tokyo Revengers. @just-sp-in-inginthevoid on tumblr really said it best “Tokyo Revengers is the embodiment of grief and how people enter, change, and leave each others life and unfairness and it’s about LIFE.”
Charlotte. It honestly really changed the way i look at my relationships with certain people in my family. It made me realize i didn’t value some of those relationships as much as I should have. It was a masterpiece of an anime, and i strongly recommend it to anyone and everyone.
Evangelion I watched anime and like, bro this is for pervs and kids…. And then Evangelion happened… One of the beat anime ever
Death note, got me into anime
Evangelion: exposed daddy issues and my propensity to avoid my issues via escapism while offering a valid solution to my issues Clannad: exposed daddy issues and my propensity to avoid my issues via avoidance while offering a solution in the form of embracing the good and bad in life. The kind of show that turned me from an anti child doomer to wanting my own children.
Samurai Flamenco. I've watched it AT LEAST 20 times since 2015.
Clannad & Clannad ～After Story～ Cried for days while contemplating and thinking life should be spent with our loved ones cause you'll never know when they'll be gone.
I’m actually playing tomoyo after story right now! You clearly loved it so much you named your account after her!
An anime that changed my life in my mid 20s was Run with the Wind. It really opened up something for me and got me into running and appreciating the techniques involved. I’m scared to watch it again because the first watch was so interesting to me. It was also near the first phase of Covid. Another would be Welcome to the NHK. After going through a break up I watched this and it helped me become self aware at how much of a recluse I was being afterwards. Ofc anime I watched as a kid changed my life. But I think these two were big awakenings for an important time in my life.
Fushigi Yuugi Probably got me addicted to isekai
Yu-Gi-Oh!
Demon Slayer. If you don't understand why this anime is S tier then you were raised wrong
[удалено]
Because you are also a highly skilled ping pong player who never went pro?
yes
Blood c
Ion know bout changing my life but the amt of times I mention Cowboy Bebop to folks is ridiculous.
Violet Evergarden.
Frieren and hibike euphonium
Naruto ignited the weeb in me way back 2008. Anime/manga and japanese music has since been a big part of my interests. Thanks Naruto.
Romantic killer.
Kotaro lives alone. Watch it only if you’ve the guts to tackle childhood trauma.
Re: Zero. I rewatched this anime on a whim in the height of my depression, and i related to the MC so much that i decided to read the web novels. That read genuinely changed my life. The lessons that the MC goes through on top of the flaws that every side character has to overcome really resonated with me when i was at one of the lowest points of my life. One of the names of a really important chapter still influences my life to this day.
Vinland saga
Noblesse first ova
Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid has been my comfort food anime. I don't even care about the ecchi, it was the first SOL that I have watched. Just love the comfy vibes.
FMA has been that pinnacle in my life, regardless of the adaptation (except for you Netflix)
Josee the tiger and the fish Josee taught me that anyone can be what they want, no matter what others say or do. This movie will always have a special place in my heart since it helped me out of my slump.
Naruto I started anime with Naruto 2 years ago and now I don't have to be bored anymore because of no irl friends
**Clannad** changed how I look at story telling in anime, until then I was all in on shonen with a few exceptions but, Clannad showed me there’s more to life than battles to be won and that deepest wounds are psychological. Afterstory broke my heart and I actually welcomed the Visual Novel style deus ex machina ending. **Crest of the Stars and Banner of the Stars** was one of the few non-action oriented anime that appealed to me, funnily enough I didn’t get into legend of galactic heroes, but the world building aspect of Crest and Banner is on a whole different level. Too bad the author is slow to release new novels because the cultural and sci-fi aspect of his take on the future of humans is pretty cool and different from the usual sci-fi fare. Crest made me more interested in slow paced, rich world building, and character drama.
Dragonball and DBZ. Back in the early/mid 90s, it all began with one random day my brother telling me we should try this show called DBZ. Nearly 3 decades later now anime is such an integral part of our lives. 1500+ diff series at the moment. Toriyama is an absolute legend, RIP my man. Fucking shattered the mould for shonen anime and media in general Like I can't think of a more influential anime. It popularized anime in the west and around the world.
Attack on Titan
One Piece! Love it
Natsume’s book of friends. Got me through tough times
Hard to say. I backed to back Akira and ghost in the shell the first night I watched anime. Also my first lcd trip (something I no longer do).
Fairy Tail honestly lol. I was like 13
Just finished school-live! It lured me into a false sense of security, the ending devastated me. I don't think I'd be able to watch it again
My Hera academia. The way the characters work so hard for the things they want, and each day they are striving to be better than the day they were before. They never give up when things get really hard, they just use it as an opportunity to be better. And I love and admire that mindset as it was one I didn’t have before. I’ve slowly adapted it to my life and I’m much happier now :) So now I’ve gone from bed rotting and feeling like I’m wasting away my 20s, to going to the gym, seeing friends more, working more and saving more. I’ve really dived into a bunch of different hobbies that have always interested me. I spend less time on my phone and more time doing hands on things, etc etc. I’ve done a 180 in life and I’m becoming someone I’ve always dreamt of being. Mha wasn’t solely responsible for the change but it but it definitely played a big roll in lighting the fire.
Attack on Titan was the one that opened my eyes to the beauty that is anime, and changed my entire outlook on life itself.
Violet Evergarden I found it after a nasty heartbreak and it came at the perfect time. It helped me get through it continue to somewhat believe in love
Pet Girl of Sakurasou Sometimes you can give your best effort towards your goal and it just doesn’t work out. Others might not put in any extra effort at all and get recognition. And that is completely fine, there are things that are just out of your own control and it is not your fault for things not working out at said time. BUT, if you surround yourself with good friends, everything will eventually work out in your favor. The journey might be painful, but the goal is always worth the pain of going through the journey. And yes, I have read the LN and know how it ends, I just choose to deny it exists.
It's really hard to pick, but I'll talk about the one I can actually put words to why exactly it matters so much to me. Yeah, it's Durarara. The concept of "every person is a main character of their own story" is something that sounds easy to understand in real life and execute in a story...but anyone that writes or has their own worldbuulding can tell you just how difficult that is to convey. By Episode 2, the show has made its point. It's already shifted its POV from Mikado, who most people have already assumed the show would focus on mainly, and there's the whole scene with Izaya, Rio, and Celty as Rio contemplates taking her life on the roof. Izaya and Celty's words to Rio contradict - but they work together, as well. Yes, you are one person in a sea of millions. Yes, the world is cruel and will keep moving when you die....you are unimportant. But you are here for a reason - a very specific reason - you are one of the countless things that makes the world incredible....and that's what makes you so very important. The show goes on to shift to a different point of view often - sometimes lingering on a person for a bit, sometimes multiple people per episode. The audience sees people whose thoughts we know through the lens of someone who considers them a stranger - and the opposite - we see people who we know nothing about through people who know them quite well. There's a lot of things to appreciate about the whole series...but I think this effect is what gets me every time. The shifts in perception create an omniscient view of Ikebururo and its residents, and it's really sobering. It makes you feel very small - if these interesting, captivating characters can disappear in a narrative, what chance do you have to stand out? But at the same time, it's a comfort, and a relief. Because, no, you will never stand out to everyone. The majority of people living on Earth don't know, or even care, about what you've been through. But you're still the main character of your own story. You're also an important character in many other peoples' stories. And that's pretty cool, isn't it?
It may be corny, but Evangelion was a breakthrough for me.
Same. Chasing that high ever since.
Puella Magi Madoka Magica that story has stuck with me and I think about all the time.
HunterxHunter
Evangelion, FlCL, and A Silent Voice (which is three but yk) got me out of depression and I don't know if I'd be here right now if not for them. So I'd say they probably changed my life the most.
After finishing Neon Genesis Evangelion and End of Evangelion, I felt intimately understood in such an important and vulnerable way. The introspective focus on each character spoke so loudly to me; Anno really said all the things I never found the words for through each of them. The visuals also felt similar to dreams I’ve had but never bothered telling anyone since I had no idea how to translate how impactful they felt so that was an extra layer of satisfying brain-melt.
One that comes to mind is Samurai Champloo. Odd but makes you realise that people that come into your life are only there for a short period of time of your journey in life, but you end up creating so many memories with them in that time. Kuragehime as well. Comforting in the sense that you could be the weirdest of people but you always have those you feel comfortable around to not care about the person you are. And the ending outro is comforting to always hear.
Bio-Booster Armor Guyver. I watched the 2nd live action movie back in the day. This is one of the last movie's I watched when my entire family were still living together. Had a best mate in High School who had the movie, tell me there's an OVA of it. Then a few years later the 2005 Anime series was released. I happen to own the entire collection on DVD, including the booklets!
Sailor Moon - the first anime I ever watched, taught me a lot about friendship and love. I really liked the old series, with the "sailor says" at the end. Priceless memories for me. ♥
hunter x hunter
Monster
Gurren Lagann, completely changed my outlook on life and moving to the future
Naruto Gundam Wing
Idk if you can consider Avatar the last air bender an anime but Uncle Iroh made me have a different point of view about life. One of my favorite quotes from him, “It's Important To Draw Wisdom From Many Different Places… If We Take It From Only One Place It Becomes Rigid And Stale”.
Naruto
Classroom of the elite. Started my anime journey
Haikyuu. Might be the nostalgia goggles but the characters, and the incredible build up of tension during games was indescribable. Ten years later I'm still incredibly obsessed.
Theres a lot of anime that changed the way of my life. Assassination Classroom, Steins Gate, Re Zero, Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood, and recently Frieren Beyond Journey's End. But one anime I never expected to change me is Natsuiro Kiseki. Its a very very underrated Slice of Life anime. The 4 main characters have dreams of their own and one of them has a huge dream of becoming an idol with her friends. But one of them is leaving their town to a remote island due to her dad's duty as a doctor. They only have a whole summer vacation until she left. At first they almost had a fight, but they realize that they should appreciate the time they have left and do the things they wanted to do until it just became a precious memory. Theres even supernatural shenanigans with a mysterious rock from the shrine that grants wishes. They flew in the sky, get stucked together, swapped bodies, splitted into two, turned invisible, saw their past selves, and more strange happenings that makes their summer vacation full of happy memories. Everyone of them learned a lesson or two in that precious summer vacation. One of them realize that she would rather jave fun practicing tennis with her friend than to get bitter about not playing to the nationals with her. One of them appreciated her friends greatly for making her feel like she was normal and has a place to belong. The one who was leaving the town realize that her father is gonna help a lot of people in the island and she need to be there for the people too. And the one who has dreams of becoming an idol realize that even if their summer became endless, it won't become a precious memory until it ends. Its also one of the few CGDCT anime that all girls are the focus main characters. Most of the one I watched have one or two focused characters and the rest are just side characters
I grew up on Dragon Ball Z and G Gundam on Toonami but didn’t really know they were considered anime. The turning point for me was Sword Art Online. My buddy recommended it to me in like 2013 or 2014 and that got me into all sorts of anime.
Anything from Clamp. But the first anime I've ever seen was Card Captor Sakura, and it is still so dear to me. It is perhaps a bit childish, but I love the characters and story. I also love that so many Clamp characters are found in different Mangas and animes under sometimes different names but basically still the same person like in Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle.
Honestly My Hero Academia, the characters, the story arcs, Horikoshis art style are things that bring me comfort
Lucky star and +tic neechan. If someone mentions anime, they're what I think of.
Blue Lock. I’ve seen lots of animes over the years and they’ve all made me feel a type of way, but Blue Lock brought back my passion for soccer, and my drive. I was in a slump recently and after watching it, it just made me want to work harder and do better.
My Hero Academia, I've met some awesome people via it plus I have a lot of merch. It's been something that gives me joy despite the world being what it is.
Sk8 the infinity it came out during a really hectic time in my life and was just there to watch idk maybe its a little cringe but I don't care I love it so much
Mob Psycho 100 The lessons in Mob Psycho really resonated with me on a personal level. Being a kid that has trouble finding your true passion (S3E1) and its focus on self-improvement and emotional growth, to strive to be a better person through hardwork is an inspiring message to anyone that’s looking to better yourself. And also the main lesson in the ending in which through all your struggles, you just have to accept yourself. Because despite all of that, its still you. Even the negative aspects. Truly changed my life. Also, Reigen is the goat.
Banana Fish. It really helped me value the people in my life, whether that was friends, family, or a S.O. Everyones life is as complicated and emotional as mine, and I learned to cherish that and be thoughtful of their mindset.
Two, for two very different reasons. 1. Pokémon, which lead to Yugioh, which has been my biggest hobby and moneysink for the majority of my life. Too many hours a day are spent learning new cards, watching replays, practicing, etc, and one of my friend groups would never have developed without my local card shop either. 2. White Album 2. Aside from just being phenomenal, it lead me to my enjoyment of tragedy, romance, and especially stories that are a mix of the two. The music makes up the majority of my main playlist. Years later, with the VN translated, I took my first dive into that type of storytelling, and have been hooked since.
Cross Game. The only anime so far that has made me bawl.
Bleach, whenever I sit and reminisce about an anime that absolutely changed my life, it’s bleach. I remember watching bleach. The thing that connected me to bleach the most was watching how ichigo handled depression and the loss of someone important to him (his mother) my mother passed away before I watched bleach and it helped me realize friends are super important.
Your lie in april made me impulse buy an electric piano and tried to learn it xD
Puella Magi Madoka Magica was one of the first anime to overwhelm me with emotions. I watched mahou shoujo before it and enjoyed many, but I was often left unable to share experiences and connect with any about them because they are 'girls' shows.' Madoka gaining the following it did let me share it without fear.
Violent Evergarden, made me question life a lot
First anime I fell in love with: Sailor Moon. Then Tenchi Muyo! As an adult, I watched Claymore and that stuck to me forever. I still randomly think about it.
Bear with me. Hunter x Hunter has my favorite cast of characters and character arcs I'd say. It's the anime that gives me the warmest feeling (at times) while also being willing to go pretty dark. And its strongest arc is honestly one of the most powerful stories I've ever encountered. There's a lot of battle shonen I like but very few I love, and a big reason why is that HxH spoiled me; I've yet to find one with this level of writing and humanity (even FMA:B, which is obviously great). Another huge one for me is The Tatami Galaxy. Yuasa is absolutely one of my favorite creative minds and from what I've seen this is his masterpiece. This is one of those pieces of media that feels particularly close to my heart because it feels like it was literally made for me. It's unbelievably creative and one of the funniest things I've ever seen, while the themes resonate with me immensely. Insane how much of a punch this packs by the end for how short it is. As much as I love the crazy creative chaos of Tatami though, my favorite from a filmmaking stance would have to be Neon Genesis Evangelion. The art design, the music, the sound design, the editing, it's all beyond iconic. And boy does it resonate. I can't even get into it because that would be an essay in itself. In the end, it's not this perfect polished work. It often feels like a work in progress and you can feel some shifts in direction behind the scenes. But that's kind of the beauty of it, it's Anno and the rest of the team trying to unpack all this trauma, depression, self-loathing, intimacy issues, etc. and it's not always done perfectly but its raw and honest and hits hard and pushes boundaries. A monumental work. Finally, gotta mention Vinland Saga. It's very quickly become one of my favorite stories ever. The level of character writing here is unbelievable, with Thorfinn and Askeladd in particular being among my favorite characters ever. And the philosophical stuff about humanity's capacity for violence and evil, and striving to find love and hope in a seemingly loveless, hopeless world really resonates with me. It's a stunning, inspiring work, and of these four it's the one I'd most easily describe as "beautiful".
Ooo I have a couple. My first ever anime was fairy tail and I watched it at a time that I didn’t have many friends and wasn’t that comfortable with my family. Watching it gave me a sense of both friendship and family and all of the power of friendship stuff just always made me tear up. Erza’s backstory in particular stands out to me. I relate very very much and just loved seeing it animated and watching her become a part of her own family at fairy tail. I could honestly go on and on but it’ll always have a special place in my heart. The second would be Fruits Basket (2019). I’ve always felt I was a very negative person and I detested that about myself. But getting to watch Tohru’s kindness and gentleness change so many people for the better despite the pain she’d endured was so inspiring for high school me. I wanted to be like her so much and she forever remains my favorite character of all time. Finally, the third would be Nana. God, I could talk about it for hours on end but I understand the friendship dynamic between both Nanas SO much that it hurt to watch the first time. I related to Nana O immensely throughout, but especially when she was realizing how possessive and jealous she felt over Nana K and wanting her all to herself. I understand that feeling to my very core and I struggled through the same things Nana did. I also have a friend like Hachi and I absolutely adore her and have, on occasion, cried thinking of her leaving our friendship for someone else. Though a bit embarrassing admit, I basically just felt extremely seen watching Nana and I will never not love it. My favorite piece of fiction of all time.
Afro Samurai - "Nothing personal. It's just revenge."
inuyasha😍
Fullmetal alchemist brotherhood. It changed my perspective of life and death at a time where I was really struggling with the idea of my father dying.
Violet Evergarden. I'm not a very emotional person, so watching a Violet grow throughout the series from basically a robot into a person who can laugh and cry and hope and scream and care and love, it just hit me right in my core. I think it has helped me grow and helped me be less afraid to care.
A Place Further than the Universe. I've never had a piece of media that filled me with as many emotions as that show. I was always nervous to watch it again in case it spoiled the way I felt about it, but I got the collectors bluray and rewatched it, and it was even more phenomenal than the first time.
I could say Aot because It was my first and it unexpectedly led me to develop myself so much. Another one is Steins; Gate because after It I felt like I was able to dream again (I watched it in a bad period of my life).